A Bridge Too Far
A Bridge Too Far was the adventure of the Outer Ring Bridge cell that took place in 710LN in the forest of Telinor in Etan. The adventure followed six members of the Bridge working to prevent a group of Blackstaves from completing a ritual after they kidnapped a member of another Bridge cell. Members The cell group was comprised of six members; the Lieutenants were Tal, a human Shadow Fade, Enedwaith a crossbow ace, Rakim a bloodrager. Whilst the newest members were; Imoan a human warrior, Aldwin a cleric of Aureonand Ilyia an elven bard blessed by Sune. Each had joined the Bridge for various reasons, some sought to uphold the core tenants of sharing knowledge whilst other sought vengeance against the Blackstaves for wrongdoings against them. Setup The group met up in their hideout in the Outer Ring farming district of Telinor city hidden beneath a bridge that stretched across a shallow river. Once together they received their orders from their Strategist that instructed them to follow up a lead on a missing Bridge member named Mik that they believe had tried to sell an artefact that he had been sent to retrieve from a Blackstaff caravan. The group departed heading to a friend of the missing man, a young girl named Kalin. There after some investigating they discovered a wanted poster for a man named Corax that they followed up in a place marked the Bug's Grove. The Pursuit of the Feller Enedwaith had heard of the Bug's Grove before and knew exactly where to lead the group through the forest trails. Once there Aldwin detected the affects of a shrine of The Mockery on some of the men that had taken up logging around the grotto. The group attacked Corax and his men that were illegally cutting down the trees surrounding the grotto, safe from the fey creatures of the forest due to the shrines aura, but while it did indeed protect them it also drove the weaker willed among them feral. After cutting down Corax's men the group chased after him on the logs where he attempted to flee down via the nearby river. Aldwin remained behind to desecrate the shrine, breaking the barrier that was keeping the fey guardians of the forest from entering the grove. Once they captured Corax the group questioned him until he quickly revealed that he had set up Mik to be captured by the Blackstaves and he pointed them towards a ruin in the north hoping for his freedom in exchange for his cooperation. Rakim however took offence to his betrayel of the Bridge and his aiding of the Blackstaves, taking his anger out on Corax's head which was quickly severed from the rest of Corax. Behind them they heard the treants of the forest finishing the destruction of the grove. The Mistaken Way After getting lost in the forest for a few hours taking the wrong trail and ending up back where they started the group set up camp in the clearing where they left Corax decapitated corpse. As they slept a Xhihiran burst from the underbrush with a dagger and stabbed Rakim whilst he slept, who Rakim quickly overpowered and decapitated. Though shaken and confused by the midnight attack the group managed to rest for the night, the canopy protecting them from the worst of the elements. Once the group reached the Green River where a fallen tree trunk served as a bridge they encountered another Xhihiran that asked if they had seen another of his kind in the forest as he was seeking his kin that had traveled to the forest to find the best lumber he could to built ships. The group explained their encounter in the forest and their desire to find ruins. The traveler was able to point them in the right direction having just avoided a group of black robed elves in a ruin to the north. He then set off to enact his race's funeral rites on his kin's corpse thanking the group and apologizing for any harm that was done upon them. The Remnants of Blood The group found a trail leading towards the ruin with various magical road markers that appeared to prevents the forest from over running the structures and road network. While Tal and Rakim scouted ahead, Aldwin examined the markers and some stonework noting that the craftsmanship was akin to that of Quel'Doran. Once the group reunited they assaulted the ruins where members of the Blackstaves were performing some sort of ritual with Mik appearing to be about to be sacrificed. The group tripped various magical alarms the Blackstaves had placed in the ruin and had to contend with some animated corpses the small group of necromancers were able to rouse against them. As they drew closer to the ritual site, the group noticed the presence of the Necromancer Nabob, a major political figure in Telinor. After knocking over the cauldron of blood that Mik had been suspended over the ritual appeared to end and the Necromancer Nabob attempted to escape using some simple illusions that Endewaith was able to dispel. Rakim ran him down attempting to apprehend him only for some perverse rituals inscribed on the necromancer's bones to melt the flesh covering them away. The group recovered from the battle and retrieved Mik, removing a crystal from his chest and healing him with magic. They then quickly departed, returning to Telinor city before Blackstaff reinforcements arrived. Repercussions Following this event there was much outcry by the College who had lost one of its council members to the Bridge though they were unable to fully connect the Bridge to the incident without incriminating other members of the College. Whatever ritual the Necromancer Nabob had been trying to complete appeared to have failed, whether it was part of any large scale plan by the Blackstaves is unclear, though it is possible it was linked to later incidents. The group all were forced to lay low for the months after the incident with some going into other cells in the region and others leaving Telinor for Sang City to work with the ally of the Bridge there, Hidal.Category:EventsCategory:CampaignsCategory:Etan Category:Fall of Eol'din